


Hostages 101

by raventree



Category: Burn Notice
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-22
Updated: 2011-12-22
Packaged: 2017-10-27 19:27:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/299238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/raventree/pseuds/raventree
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Michael knows a lot about hostage situations. From both sides of the gun.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hostages 101

**Author's Note:**

> Burn Notice belongs to other people and the USA network.

When you have a group of hostages, there will often be one that I call the primary hostage. They’re the ones who act as human shields and read out the bad guy’s manifestoes on badly filmed videos sent cops. They’re also the first ones to get their heads blown off if something goes wrong.  
In a bank heist, there are usually four ways the robbers choose a primary hostage. The first is because they believe the person can get them what they want; a bank teller, or sometimes the bank manager. These are also usually the first people to get a gun pointed at them, it all depends on how well the plan is going. Once the cops show up, the person who can get them what they want changes. The second choice has to do with empathy. People don’t connect with a fifty year old, single divorce lawyer. Kill him and it becomes an extremely tasteless joke. Kill a child, or a pregnant woman, people start talking about lynch mobs. The hostage has to strike a balance; someone people will want to care about, but not so much they start looking for convenient trees.  
The third option is to pick the troublemaker. Troublemakers come in two kinds; the hero and the jerk. The hero often has some kind of training; law enforcement maybe military, enough to make them think they can do something, but not enough to actually pull anything off. Spies know better. Being a hero will get you killed nine times out of ten. Jerks are usually too arrogant and think they’re too rich or important to get hurt. Again, spies know better. Shooting a troublemaker can solve a lot of potential problems and lets the cops know you mean business.  
The fourth type is simply the hostage of convenience; someone on the edge of the group, close to the bad guys. This doesn’t mean you can’t avoid being picked. Speaking with a heavy accent or another language entirely makes you a bad choice to talk to the cops. Bawling your eyes out, hyperventilating or appearing to be too scared to even talk produces the same get-out-of-jail-free card. Faking a limp or other disability can also lower your potential use as a hostage, but not always.  
All of which is good to know if you ever find yourself in a bank heist. Of course, ideally, you would never be in a hold up in the first place.

Especially not with your Mother.

**Author's Note:**

> My first Burn Notice fanfic.


End file.
